Archive for June, 2009
In many middle schools or intermediate schools, students in the 5th through 7th grades are struggling with reading and writing. We often wonder why–why is it they can read on grade level in the primary grades, by the end of 3rd grade the students are beginning to fall behind and by the time they enter middle school grades teachers frind the student working below grade level in reading and writing. If they are below grade level in reading and writing, chances are they are behind in every subject they take. Reading and writing are the foundation for every subject taught in school.
Another thing that often happens at this age is that schools set up their curriculum in a way that reading as a subject in itself is no longer really taught. Teachers at that middle school level teach literature and writing, but often those secondary certificates do not require teachers to take a reading methods class. They are not trained to teach struggling readers.
So what can we do about this? How about a block schedule where enough time is given to literacy to really teach it and have time to practice what is taught. In reading, teachers actually teach students how to read, how to be a good reader. What is it that good readers do? They are able to choose a book that they are interested in and that is on their level. Good readers really read and read a lot. They read books cover to cover. They understand what they read. They may predictions, inferences, and actually relate to what they are reading. Teachers teach this to their students. They teach them what to do when they come to a word they don’t know. They teach them the skills it takes to be a good reader. But even more important, they provide time for their students to practice these skills.
In writing workshop, they encourage their students to write well. What makes a good writer? Good writers can catch the attention of the reader and keep it. They write in a way that is interesting and uses good literary techniques. Teachers in writing workshop take the skills good writers have and point them out to students as examples in their reading and then turn them into good writing skills. Teachers teach students the writing process. They learn to choose something to write about that is interesting to them. They write a rough draft, read it, add to that draft and make it even better, edit it and make a final copy.
Students are given time to practice writing and reading. A block schedule lets this happen. If you have only 45 minutes to an hour for language arts, students don’t have the time needed to have reading and writing lessons and practice on top of that. If you think your struggling students will do it at home–think again! We have to provide accountable reading practice at school. Now that’s another blog–how do we make that practice accountable.
A good literacy coach and trainer can mentor the teachers in your school and help them make that block schedule work for them and the students. Watch for the next blog–How to make reading and writing practice accountable? Register for updates and get the blogs automatically added to your email inbox!
Anyone who has ever been involved in the business of education knows that it is constantly changing. That is true too of staff development. We are seeing schools move from a one day training on a given topic or strategy that a school has decided the teachers need or want to a more in-depth training that takes place over a period of time and includes training as well as follow up, mentoring, and observations of implementation. As a trainer I have often feared that teachers would come and listen and even be inspired to try the ideas that I taught. However, upon going back to school, they are responsible for continuing the programs they have in place and they have a classroom full of students that need their attention in a variety of ways. Even though the new program in mandated from administration or state agencies, teachers have little support to implement the strategy fully. Principals and other administrators may or may not have had the training. In that one or two days of training, ever person that attended heard it in a different way and saw different priorities in how to implement. Two teachers who sat through the very same training may go back and implement in different ways.
Sometimes powerful programs are very effective when implemented as they have been researched, but when schools implement the programs in a new way, that powerful program can be powerful enough to bring down test scores and teach your students things you really didn’t want them to learn.
As a trainer, I am excited to see this shift in staff development and in-service training. Having follow up training and mentoring teachers through the implementation process is a luxury that the smaller districts have always had a problem providing. Larger districts hire curriculum specialists to provide the follow up and mentoring that teachers need. But in our smaller schools, all of the responsibility for instruction and curriculum falls on the shoulders of principals and superintendents. Often that is only one person and that one administrator is responsible for all levels from early childhood through high school.
However with the high cost of bringing in an outside consultant, small districts are unable to provide the services that are needed. After being in the corporate and not for profit world for the last few years, I decided that I really want to get back into schools and help teachers. Everything I hear and read says that you should find your passion and do what you love. I really loved training teachers and it was very fulfilling—so now I’m working to build my business again.
What I want administrators to know is this—I’m really good at training teachers. And even though the one day sit and listen method wasn’t as effective as it could have been, I know that many teachers did take what I taught and implemented new programs in their classrooms with successful results. I am able to relate to teachers—because I did it for 21 years and have continued to be involved in teaching throughout my consulting career. This year I taught 7th graders an alcohol and drug awareness program designed to give them ways and reasons to say no to peer pressure. I have been active as a volunteer and mentor teacher in several districts.
Two years ago, I was instrumental in a program to raise 5th grade math scores in a small district near my home. Working with all of the classroom teachers, kindergarten through 5th grade, by providing hands-on, we focused our efforts on child centered math lessons that concentrated on conceptual understanding and problem solving strategies. A program for tutoring targeted specific objectives for particular students using disaggregated data from benchmark tests. Volunteers and high school students taught students one on one and analyzed the students’ mistakes from the benchmark tests, discussed why the student miss the problem, corrected those mistakes, and worked similar problems for practice until students could easily understand and master the objective. We also focused on literacy. Focusing on reading practice, vocabulary, and comprehension not only raised reading scores, but gave students the ability to read the problems posed on the state tests. We saw test scores go up at a remarkable rate over that 2-3 year period. Teachers are continuing to use those methods and continue to see positive results.
Are you looking for someone to provide your teachers training in the strategies that research has shown to work in schools whether it be in effective teaching, literacy, or math? Someone who will provide follow up training, mentor teaching and email or telephone conferencing, someone who will work with your teachers in a risk free environment where they can be comfortable being observed, asking questions, and trying new ideas and methods?
I would love to be that person for your schools. And I will do it for a fee that will not break your entire budget. Please give me a call and let’s talk about fees and developing a contract for training throughout the 2009-2010 school year. I have available dates throughout the summer and school year to make a plan for your teachers’ training.
I develop trainings based on the needs of your particular school and your specific teachers at each grade level. All staff development comes from widely recognized authorities in the field of education and what truly works in schools. I do not have a canned program; it’s what works in schools across the country that have proven their success. Nothing matters as much as good teaching and one of the major qualities of an outstanding teacher is his/her desire to learn. You will see that I not only will teach how to be an effective teacher, but I will model good teaching techniques so that your teachers will be more likely to take what they learn back to their classrooms. Effective classroom strategies in math and literacy can be integrated across the curriculum and into the arts. One of the best methods of staff development is to provide time for me to come in and model instruction in their own classrooms and then watch them teach a similar lesson. I will follow up with school visits, telephone and email consultations.
My desire is to partner with a number of individual schools or districts as their staff development and instructional specialist. I will contract with your school for a number of days at a very reasonable fee. Please give me a call. I think you will find this is an affordable way to provide some of the best instructional leadership for you schools.
Nothing brings chills to a teacher’s bones like the word change. In schools it seems that nothing stays the same. Educators are constantly looking for a better way to get the job done. We hear about changes in curriculum and instructional practices. We see programs come and go over the years—even those that are effective run their course. Schools have seen many changes over the years, but when it comes right down to it, schools have not changed as quickly as other parts of our society. Schools are pretty much the same—new programs and strategies are not given a chance, they are not implemented. Teachers take on the attitude, “Don’t spend too much time worrying about this one, it too shall pass.” As a teacher, you feel like you just got the hang of doing something and now it’s all changing again. So many teachers do take on a wait and see attitude.
As soon as teachers go into their rooms on the first day of school, they try to do their deal level best to teach their students the best they can. They have had a day of in-service training teaching them a new technique and they come back ready to give it a try. Sometimes it doesn’t work the way they want it to, or if it may take a lot of time preparing for the new strategy—whatever the reason, it may or may not ever truly be implemented. Could it be that the way staff development and in-service training is administered contributes to the apathy and ineffectiveness of the new strategies that educators have found to be effective in other places?
Lots of research and knowledge is available about change and the role that leaders play in this process. Just like teachers, principals are stretched in every direction. Managing instruction and curriculum, athletics, drug programs, character education, staff, and the budget all take a great deal of time. Learning enough about the new programs to effectively supervise the implementation sometimes gets pushed to the back burner. In small districts, there are no curriculum coordinators and subject area specialists to provide the mentor role with teachers. Principals, assistant principals, and counselors are put in the position of providing staff development follow up.
As a professional staff developer, I see my role as not only a person who shares knowledge, but also as that of a mentor. Although I often do keynote speeches and one day presentations for schools, I know these are less effective than days with follow up. As I work with teachers, I try to model effective instruction—after all, I’m still teaching—my students are just older, hopefully smarter and more mature, but often have worse listening habits than any third grader I’ve ever taught.
